Mike Rathje
a.k.a. "Michael Steven Rathje"
Philadelphia Flyers / NHL - 09/10
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PROFILE ANALYTICS
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Mike Rathje Facts
- Date of Birth
- May 11, 1974
- Age
- 52
- Place of Birth
- Buffalo, NY, USA
- Nation
- Canada
- Youth Team
- -
- Position
- D
- Height
- 196 cm / 6'5"
- Weight
- 107 kg / 236 lbs
- Shoots
- L
- Status
- Retired
- Highlights
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Rathje was a skilled defensive-minded rearguard. He was a huge piece of business and used his tremendous reach effectively. With the Sharks, he often played on the same pairing as Marcus Ragnarsson.
He was not typical blue line big man. He had no mean streak and he was never going put a guy into the first row with thunderous bodychecks. He was very strong, able to handle top power forwards. But the strength of his game was his surprising skating ability, blessed with mobility and a burst of speed. Combined with excellent positioning Rathje could keep up with the top speedsters. Unfortunately, Rathje's career was cut short by chronic hip and back problems. He never officially retired and spent 2007 to 2010 on the Flyers' long-term injured reserve list.
Team Staff profile of Mike Rathje also available »He was not typical blue line big man. He had no mean streak and he was never going put a guy into the first row with thunderous bodychecks. He was very strong, able to handle top power forwards. But the strength of his game was his surprising skating ability, blessed with mobility and a burst of speed. Combined with excellent positioning Rathje could keep up with the top speedsters. Unfortunately, Rathje's career was cut short by chronic hip and back problems. He never officially retired and spent 2007 to 2010 on the Flyers' long-term injured reserve list.
Fans expected him to kill people because of his size and presence on the ice.
—Dan Rusanowsky 2010
I really had to sacrifice in order to get into good condition — (time with) family, friends, everything. But eventually the work did pay off
—Mike Rathje 2010
He was always in position and incredibly hard to move or get around.
—Dan Rusanowsky 2010
You should only focus on what you can control. The skills follow once you can get control of your head.
—Mike Rathje 2010
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Mike Rathje Statistics
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Mike Rathje Tournament Statistics
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| S | Team | League | GP | G | A | TP | PIM | +/- | POST | GP | G | A | TP | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 90-91 |  Team Alberta | CWG | - | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||
| 91-92 | Canada U18 | Phoenix Cup | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 | - |
Mike Rathje Career Totals
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| League | Years | GP | G | A | TP | PPG | PIM | +/- | Years | GP | G | A | TP | PPG | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMHL (AEHL U18) | 1 | 33 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 0.52 | 30 | - | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0.33 | 2 | - |
| CWG | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0 | |||||||
 IHL | 4 | 48 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 0.42 | 41 | -4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 12 | -3 |
| NHL | 16 | 768 | 30 | 150 | 180 | 0.23 | 491 | 26 | 9 | 77 | 9 | 14 | 23 | 0.30 | 51 | -15 |
 Phoenix Cup (Hlinka Gretzky Cup) | 1 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0.33 | 8 | - | 0 | |||||||
| WHL | 3 | 188 | 14 | 76 | 100 | 0.53 | 230 | - | 3 | 26 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 0.42 | 16 | - |
| WJC-20 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0.57 | 14 | -1 | 0 |
* Some data is missing to provide a correct summary.
Mike Rathje Hockey Connections
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Mike Rathje Career Highlights
| Season | Awards by Season |
|---|---|
| 1991-1992 | |
| 1992-1993 |
Mike Rathje Biography and Trivia
Cult/Star player for San Jose Sharks
Career transactions- 1992-06-20 • Selected 3rd overall in the NHL Entry Draft by the San Jose Sharks
- 2005-08-02 • Signed to a five-year contract by the Phildelphia Flyers
• Missed majority of 1996-97 due to groin injury vs. Dallas Stars, 1996-11-08
• Missed majority of 2006-07 due to a back injury
• Missed entire 2007-08 due to a groin injury
After retiring, he remained near San Jose and invested in several restaurants. He also invested in a trucking company servicing Alberta's oil fields.